The  Publication  Committee  of  the  Caxton  Club  certifies  that 
this  copy  is  one  of  an  edition  consisting  of  one  hundred  and  eighty- 
six  copies  on  American  hand-made  paper,  and  three  copies  on 
Japanese  vellum,  printed  from  type,  and  completed  in  the  month  of 
January,  Eighteen  Hundred  and  Ninety-Eight. 


SOME    LETTERS   OF   EDGAR   ALLAN 

POE   TO    E.   H.  N.   PATTERSON 

OF  OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS, 

WITH    COMMENTS 

BY    EUGENE 

FIELD 


SOME  LETTERS  OF  EDGAR  ALLAN 

POE  TO  E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON 

OF  OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS, 

WITH  COMMENTS 

BY  EUGENE 

FIELD 


CHICAGO 
THE  CAXTON   CLUB 

1898 


COPYRIGHT  BY  SLASON  THOMPSON   &   COMPANY 
EIGHTEEN   HUNDRED   AND  EIGHTY-NINE 

COPYRIGHT  BY  THE   CAXTON   CLUB 
EIGHTEEN   HUNDRED   AND   NINETY-EIGHT 


NOTE 

For  permission  to  reprint  from  America,  Eugene  Field's 
article  entitled "  Poe,  Patterson,  and  Oquawka,"  the  thanks  of 
the  Caxton  Club  are  due  to  Mr.  Slason  Thompson,  owner  of  the 
copyright.  The  Facsimiles  of  the  six  Poe  manuscripts  are  made  by 
the  courtesy  of  Mr.  Charles  L.  Hut  chins  on,  owner  of  the  originals. 


M755609 


SOME  LETTERS  OF  EDGAR  ALLAN  POE  TO 

E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON  OF  OQUAWKA, 

ILLINOIS,  WITH  COMMENTS 

BY  EUGENE  FIELD 


IN  "Illinois  in  1837;  with  a  Map,"  published  by  S. 
Augustus  Mitchell  in  Philadelphia  in  1837,  we  find 
this  interesting  information:"*  "Oquawka,  or  Yellow 
Banks,  is  a  town  recently  settled.  It  is  situated  on  the 
Mississippi  River,  about  midway  between  the  Des  Moines 
and  Rock  Island  rapids,  and  is  the  principal  depot  for 
freight  between  those  points.  The  town  is  laid  out  in 
two  sections  on  an  extensive  scale.  The  soil  is  sandy; 
and  the  surface,  gently  undulating,  is  sparsely  covered 
with  a  stinted  growth  of  oaks,  extending  to  the  bluff, 
two  miles  back.  Henderson  River,  a  fine  stream  for 
milling  purposes,  passes  along  the  foot  of  these,  and  is 
crossed  by  a  neat  and  substantial  bridge.  There  are 
two  large  warehouses  in  the  town,  one  store,  one 
grocery,  two  taverns,  and  several  dwelling-houses. 
There  is  a  good  flouring  and  saw  mill  about  two  miles 
distant,  and  a  steam  mill  is  about  to  be  erected.  The 
site  of  this  place  was  sold  by  the  original  to  the  present 
proprietor  for  $200,"  etc. 

Such   was    Oquawka    in    1837;     twelve    years    later 
Edgar   A.    Poe,  the   poet,    author,   and   critic,  not   only 

*Page  1 08. 

9 


SOME    LETTERS    OF    EDGAR    ALLAN    POE 

seriously  contemplated  publishing  a  pretentious  national 
magazine  in  this  town,  but  had  even  made  preparations 
for  that  undertaking.  The  facts  in  the  case  are  these: 

J.  B.  Patterson  came  from  Winchester,  Va.,  to 
Oquawka  in  September,  1835.  A  year  later,  his  wife, 
accompanied  by  their  eight-year-old  son,  joined  him. 
Mr.  Patterson  founded  the  Oquawka  Spectator,  a  weekly 
publication  still  in  existence.  He  was  a  man  of  fine 
literary  taste  and  good  literary  ability;  his  life  of  Black 
Hawk  is  properly  regarded  as  a  standard  history  of  early 
border  times.  The  son,  Edward  Howard  Norton,  was 
reared  most  prudently;  fond  of  reading,  he  was  provided 
with  the  best  books  and  with  the  choicest  magazine  liter 
ature.  Under  the  discreet  guidance  of  his  parents,  he  was 
developed  from  youth  into  a  manhood  of  unusual  promise. 

Young  Patterson  came  of  age  on  January  27,  1849. 
At  that  time  his  father  handed  over  to  him  the  manage 
ment  of  the  Spectator  and  of  the  job-printing  office  con 
nected  therewith.  Full  of  ambition  and  of  confidence, 
the  young  man  had  long  cherished  the  determination  to 
make  for  himself  a  place  and  a  reputation  in  the  literary 
world.  Of  the  many  figures  conspicuous  at  that  time 
in  American  literature  he  most  admired  Edgar  A.  Poe. 
In  the  Southern  Literary  Messenger ',  in  Graham 'j,  in  the 
Pioneer,  and  in  the  Broadway  Journal,  he  had  read  and 
was  fascinated  by  the  work  of  this  remarkable  genius. 
The  reported  adversities  and  distresses  of  Poe  aroused  in 
the  young  man  a  feeling  of  ardent  sympathy,  and,  as 


IO 


TO    E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON   OF   OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS 

the  twenty-first  year  of  his  age  approached,  he  made 
up  his  mind  to  address  Poe,  with  a  proposition  to  come 
West  and  to  embark  with  him  in  a  new  and,  as  he 
firmly  believed,  a  feasible  literary  venture.  He  wrote 
to  Poe  upon  December  18,  1848,  and  addressed  the 
letter  to  Fordham,  N.  Y.,  that  point  having  been  desig 
nated  by  Mr.  Putnam  as  Poe's  place  of  residence.  For 
a  long  time  no  answer  came,  but  in  April,  1849,  tne 
following  letter  was  received  from  Poe: 

New-York,  April,  1849. 
DEAR   SIR, 

No  doubt  you  will  be  surprised  to  learn  that 
your  letter,  dated  Dec.  18.  has  only  this  moment 
reached  me.  I  live  at  the  village  of  Fordham, *  about 

*  In  a  volume  entitled  "  Echoes  of  the  Esthetic  Society  of  Jersey  City"  (Thompson 
&  Moreau,  New  York,  1882)  occurs  an  account,  by  Mrs.  Martha  J.  Lamb,  of  a 
visit  to  Poe's  house,  at  Fordham.  From  this  paper  I  take  the  following  pertinent 
extracts  :  "  Fordham  is  an  inconspicuous  portion  of  New  York  City,  a  few  miles  north 
of  Harlem  River.  ...  In  less  than  35  minutes  the  ride  was  accomplished.  Then 
came  a  walk  of  nearly  half  a  mile.  We  crossed  the  railroad  track,  and  a  wide,  dusty 
street,  and  then  ascended  a  picturesque  hill,  upon  the  very  backbone  of  which  stands  the 
house  where  Poe  wrote  <  The  Raven.'  I  scarcely  know  which  struck  me  the  more 
forcibly,  its  diminutive  size  or  its  quaint  antiquity.  The  gable  end  is  partially  sheltered 
from  the  street  by  an  aged  cherry  tree,  and  pear  and  apple  trees  of  a  former  generation 
hover  about  on  other  sides,  like  sentinels  on  duty.  The  fence,  which  incloses  both  house 
and  grounds,  is  lined  with  lilac  and  currant  bushes.  .  .  .  'This  is  the  room  where 
Mr.  Poe  did  his  writing,'  she  said.  '  We  have  not  been  here  long  enough  to  fix  up  the 
place  much.  There  are  two  rooms  on  this  floor  and  two  rooms  above,  but  the  house  is 
full  of  little  closets  and  nooks,  and  is  more  roomy  than  it  seems.'  She  certainly  did  open 
doors  in  most  unexpected  places.  .  .  .  Two  windows  to  the  north  opened  upon  an 
exceptionally  beautiful  landscape  in  summer,  and  a  wide  expanse  of  immaculate  snow  in 
winter  ;  and  two  windows  to  the  south  swept  the  pretty  garden  and  fields  beyond. 
In  their  season,  the  perfume  of  many  flowers,  and  the  music  of  birds  and  bees  filled  the 
air  which  fanned  his  brow.  The  chamber  where  Poe  slept,  and  where  they  say  his 
mother-in-law  used  to  lock  him  up  for  days  together,  was  up-stairs.  It  had  a  roofed 


II 


SOME    LETTERS    OF    EDGAR   ALLAN    POE 

14  miles  from  New-York,  on  the  Harlem  Rail-Road  — 
but  as  there  is  no  Post-Office  at  the  place,  I  date 
always  from  New- York,  and  get  all  my  letters  from  the 
city  Post-Office.  When,  by  accident  or  misapprehension, 
letters  are  especially  directed  to  me  at  Fordham,  the 
clerks — some  of  them  who  do  not  know  my  arrange 
ments —  forward  them  to  West- Farms,  the  nearest 
Post-Office  town,  and  one  which  I  rarely  visit.  Thus  it 
happened  with  your  letter — on  account  of  the  request 
which  you  made  Mr.  Putnam,  I  presume,  "to  forward 
it  to  my  residence."  I  have  thought  it  proper  to  make 
you  this  explanation,  lest  you  may  have  been  all  this 
time  fancying  me  discourteous  in  not  replying  to  your 
very  flattering  proposition. 

I  deeply  regret  that  I  did  not  sooner  receive  it;  and 
had  it  reached  me  in  due  season,  I  would  have  agreed 
to  it  unhesitatingly.  In  assuming  "  originality '  as 
the  "keystone  of  success"  in  such  enterprises,  you  are 
right;  and  not  only  right,  but,  in  yourself,  almost 
"original"  —  for  there  are  none  of  our  publishers  who 
have  the  wit  to  perceive  this  vital  truth.  What  the 
public  seek  in  a  Magazine  is  what  they  cannot  elsewhere 
procure. 

Should    you   not  have   changed  your   mind   on   the 

ceiling,  with  a  sharp  point  in  the  center  (sic).  At  the  east  end  was  a  high  wooden 
mantel,  with  a  small  square  window  on  each  side  of  it,  and  there  was  a  little  one-pane 
window  under  the  eaves,  to  the  south.  My  eye  fell  upon  the  door,  with  its  queer  little 
old-fashioned  panels,  and  last  century's  latch  two-thirds  of  the  way  to  the  top. 
1  That  was  Mr.  Poe's  cow-house  over  there,'  said  the  young  woman,  pointing  towards  a 
little  inclosure  some  six  feet  square  in  the  side  of  the  lodge." 

12 


TO    E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON  OF   OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS 

subject,  I  should  be  pleased  to  hear  from  you  again.  I 
do  not  think — (in  fact  I  am  perfectly  sure  of  the  con 
trary) —  that  a  Magazine  could  succeed  to  any  great 
extent,  under  the  precise  form,  title,  and  general  plan 
which  (no  doubt  hurriedly)  you  have  suggested;  but 
your  idea  of  the  duplicate  publication,  East  &  West, 
strikes  me  forcibly. 

Experience,  not  less  than  the  most  mature  reflection 
on  the  topic,  assures  me  that  no  cheap  Magazine  can 
ever  again  prosper  in  America.  We  must  aim  high- 
address  the  intellect — the  higher  classes — of  the  country 
(with  reference,  also,  to  a  certain  amount  of  foreign 
circulation)  and  put  the  work  at  $5: — giving  about  112 
pp.  (or  perhaps  128)  with  occasional  wood-engravings 
in  the  first  style  of  art,  but  only  in  obvious  illustration 
of  the  text.  Such  a  Mag.  would  begin  to  pay  after 
1000  subscribers;  and  with  5000*  would  be  a  fortune 
worth  talking  about: — but  there  is  no  earthly  reason 
why,  under  proper  management,  and  with  energy  and 
talent,  the  work  might  not  be  made  to  circulate,  at  the 
end  of  a  few  years — (say  5)  20,000  copies — in  which 
case  it  would  give  a  clear  income  of  70  or  80,000 
dollars — even  if  conducted  in  the  most  expensive  man 
ner,  paying  the  highest  European  prices  for  contribu 
tions  &  designs.  I  need  not  add  that  such  a  Mag. 
would  exercise  a  literary  and  other  influence  never  yet 

*  Under  date  of  January  18,  1889,  Mr.  R.  W.  Gilder,  editor  of  the  Century, 
writes  :  "  The  average  circulation  per  month  for  the  last  four  years  of  the  Century 
Magazine  is  212,000  copies." 


SOME    LETTERS    OF    EDGAR    ALLAN    POE 

exercised  in  America. — I  presume  you  know  that  during 
the  second  year  of  its  existence,  the  "S.  L.  Messenger" 
rose  from  less  than  1000  to  5000  subs.,  and  that 
"  Graham,"  in  18  months  after  my  joining  it,  went  up 
from  5000  to  52,000.  I  do  not  imagine  that  a  $5 
Mag.  could  ever  be  forced  into  so  great  a  circulation  as 
this  latter;  but,  under  certain  circumstances,  I  would 
answer  for  20,000.  The  whole  income  from  Graham's 
52,000  never  went  beyond  15,000$: — the  proportional 
expenses  of  the  $3  Mags,  being  so  very  much  greater 
than  those  of  the  $5  ones. 

My  plan,  in  getting  up  such  a  work  as  I  propose, 
would  be  to  take  a  tour  through  the  principal  States — 
especially  West  &  South — visiting  the  small  towns  more 
particularly  than  the  large  ones — lecturing  as  I  went,  to 
pay  expenses — and  staying  sufficiently  long  in  each  place 
to  interest  my  personal  friends  (old  College  &  West 
Point  acquaintances  scattered  all  over  the  land)  in  the 
success  of  the  enterprise.  By  these  means,  I  would 
guarantee,  in  3  months  (or  4)  to  get  1,000  subs,  in 
advance,  with  their  signatures  —  nearly  all  pledged  to 
pay  on  the  issue  of  the  first  number.  Under  such  cir 
cumstances,  success  would  be  certain.  I  have  now 
about  200  names  pledged  to  support  me  whenever  I 
venture  on  the  undertaking — which  perhaps  you  are 
aware  I  have  long  had  in  contemplation* — only  await 
ing  a  secure  opportunity. 

*  Since  1843. 


TO   E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON   OF   OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS 

If  you  will  write  me  your  views  on  the  subject- 
as  much  in  detail  as  possible  —  and  if  they  accord  in 
any  degree  with  mine  —  I  will  endeavor  to  pay  you  a 
visit  at  Oquawka,  or  meet  you  at  any  place  you  suggest, 
where  we  can  talk  the  matter  over  with  deliberation. 
Please  direct  your  reply  simply  to  New-York  City. 

Very  Respy. 
Yr  Ob.  St. 

EDGAR  A  POE. 
E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON, 


Young  Patterson's  answer  to  this  singularly  interest 
ing  letter  was  dated  May  7,  1849;  tne  letter  *s  lost, 
but  at  this  moment  the  original  memoranda  from  which 
the  letter  was  drafted  are  before  us  and  we  transcribe 
them  verbatim,  as  follows: 

Oquawka,  May  J,  l8/f.^> 
DEAR   SIR  — 

Yours  of  April  is  before  me,  and  I  hasten  to 
reply.  I  feared  that  my  letter  had  never  reached 
you  (and  had  contempt.),  or  that  other  engagements  had 
prevented  your  replying.  You  ask  me  to  give  (me)  you 
my  views  upon  the  subject  of  our  present  correspond 
ence  "as  much  in  detail  as  possible;'  this  I  shall  pro 
ceed  briefly  and  concisely  to  do.  (Your  remarks,  especially 
as  they  are  strong.)  Your  opinions,  strengthened  as  they 
have  been  by  experience,  have  had  their  weight  in  con 
vincing  me  that  it  would  probably  be  better  to  establish 

'5 


SOME    LETTERS    OF    EDGAR    ALLAN    POE 

at  the  outset  a  high-priced,  and  correspondingly  high- 
toned  periodical,  which  would,  without  doubt,  win  a 
generous  and  extended  patronage  from  a  genius-appre 
ciating  public.  When  I  wrote  you  before,  I  had  not 
given  the  subject  that  consideration  (necessary  to)  which 
it  deserved, — my  principal  object  at  that  time  being  to 
enlist  your  sympathies  and  interests  in  a  periodical  (to 
be  published  by  me)y  the  literary  contents  of  which  should 
be  exclusively  under  your  control,  believing  that  such  an 
enterprise  would  prove  successful,  not  doubting  that 
even  a  cheap  Magazine,  under  your  editorial  control, 
could  be  made  to  pay  well,  and  at  the  same  time 
exert  a  beneficial  influence  upon  American  Literature. 
But  I  certainly  think  that  a  Magazine  (upon)  such 
as  you  suggest,  would  yield  a  handsome  income— 
probably  a  "  fortune  worth  talking  about '  —and  also 
subserve  the  interests  of  Literature  to  a  much  greater 
extent. 

Our  Literature  is,  just  now,  sadly  deficient  in  the 
department  of  criticism.  The  Boston  Reviewers  are, 
generally,  too  (contracted  in  their  views)  much  affected  by 
local  prejudices  to  give  impartial  criticisms;  the  Phila 
delphia  Magazines  (are)  have  become  mere  monthly 
bulletins  for  booksellers;  Willis  does  not,  with  his  paper, 
succeed,  even  tolerably^  as  a  critic;  in  fact,  I  seldom  find 
any  (review)  critique  so  nearly  according  with  my  own 
idea  of  the  true  aim  and  manner  of  criticism  as  were 
yours,  while  you  had  charge  of  that  department  in 

16 


THE 


TO   E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON   OF   OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS 

Graham  and  Burton  s.  I  wish  (and  am  not  alone 
in  the  wish)  to  see  you  at  the  head  of  an  influential 
periodical,  where  you  saw  (speak  at)— 

As  you  do  not  appear  to  be  pleased  with  the  (plan) 
name  suggested  by  me,  I  will  leave  to  you  the  task  of 
selecting  an  appropriate  name,  and  would  suggest  that 
you  make  it  unique — something  that  will  be  at  once 
taking  and  will  sound  well.  Make  out  a  list  of  con 
tributors  and  write  a  prospectus,  and  forward  to  me  as 
soon  as  you  can,  so  that  I  may  at  once  commence  oper 
ations — or,  if  it  would  be  more  consonant  with  your 
views,  I  will  visit  New  York  if  possible  by  the  first  of 
August,  prepared  to  purchase  suitable  materials  to 
(comm)  fulfill  my  part  of  the  work,  and  then  consult  with 
you  more  deliberately  upon  minutiae. 

My  plan  then  (with  certain  modifications  which  we 
may  agree  upon)  is  this : 

I  will  furnish  an  office,  and  take  upon  myself  the 
sole  charge  and  expense  of  Publishing  a  Magazine  (name 
to  be  suggested  by  you)  to  be  issued  in  monthly 
numbers  at  Oquawka,  Illinois,  containing,  in  every 
number,  96  pages,  of  the  same  size  of  those  of  Graham's 
Magazine,  on  good  paper  and  new  bold-face  long 
primer  (literary  critical  reviews  to  be  set  in  smaller  type) 
at  the  rate  of  (Jive)  $5  per  annum.  Of  this  magazine 
you  are  to  have  the  entire  editorial  control,  furnishing, 
at  your  expense,  matter  for  its  pages,  which  can  be 
transmitted  to  me  by  mail  or  as  we  may  hereafter  agree 


SOME    LETTERS    OF    EDGAR    ALLAN    POE 

upon.  (The  profits  mone)  You  can  make  your  own 
bargains  with  authors  whose  contributions  you  secure, 
and  I  am  to  publish  upon  the  best  terms  I  can  —  each 
incurring  the  expenses  consequent  upon  his  own 
department  —  and  we  are  to  share  the  receipts  equally 
—  the  books  to  be  faithfully  kept  in  the  publication 
office  at  Oquawka,  and  one-half  of  all  receipts  from  sub 
scriptions,  and  private  and  agency  sales  to  be  forwarded 
to  you  monthly,  by  mail  or  as  you  may  otherwise  direct. 


\JJpon  another 

If  one  thousand  subscribers  can  be  secured  in 
advance  (and  I  have  your  assurance  that  they  can),  I 
am  desirous  of  publishing  a  Magazine  of  this  character. 
Your  plan  for  procuring  subscribers  strikes  me  as  having 
been  happily  conceived,  and  from  its  very  "originality," 
exclusive  of  your  own  extended  personal  popularity, 
must  succeed  admirably.  On  my  part,  I  think  my 
influence  probably  would  extend  to  probably  500  subs., 
but  I  depend  mainly  upon  your  name,  which  (whatever 
may  be  the  title  you  may  propose)  must  form  a  part 
thereof.  The  fact  of  your  editorship  must  also  be  well 
displayed  in  the  prospectus. 

Oquawka  is  comparatively  an  unimportant  point, 
but  I  think  that  such  being  the  case  would  not  injure 
at  all  the  circulation  of  the  Magazine.  Those  who 
would  become  subscribers,  would  be  induced  to  do  so 
by  their  confidence  in  the  abilities  of  the  Editor,  and 


TO   E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON    OF   OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS 

the  names  of  the  contributors — and  after  the  appearance 
of  the  first  number  I  would  guarantee  that  none  will  be 
disposed  to  cavil  at  the  style  or  manner  of  publication. 
Here  I  can,  situated  as  I  now  am,  do  my  work  at  a  less 
outlay,  do  it  as  neatly,  and  enjoy  every  mail  advantage 
that  I  could  at  St.  Louis,*  being  but  30  hours  travel 
from  that  city,  and  being  situated  immediately  upon  the 
Mississippi,  with  daily  connection  with  the  Northern 
Canal  and  St.  Louis,  and  directly  upon  the  great  daily 
mail  line  from  the  East,  through  Penn.,  Ohio,  and  Indi 
ana.  In  short,  I  could  have  no  advantage  in  St.  Louis 
that  I  may  not  avail  myself  of  here — while  here  my 
expenses  would  not  be  so  great  as  they  would  there,  at 
least  not  in  the  beginning; — when  the  Magazine  circu 
lates  five  thousand  copies  it  may  be  to  our  interests  to 
publish  it  elsewhere — time  will  tell. 

I  have  decided  upon  96  pages — exclusive  of  cover; 
thinking  that  we  had  better  begin  with  a  work  of  this 
size.  If,  at  the  end  of  the  first  year,  our  circulation 
should  justify,  we  can  make  a  favorable  impression  as 
regards  the  stability  of  the  work  by  enlarging  to  112 
pages  or  perhaps  even  to  128  pp. 

I  should  expect  you  to  be  at  one-half  the  cost  of 
printing,  say,  100  (perhaps  a  somewhat  larger  number) 
copies  sent  to  editors  in  payment  of  insertion  of  pros 
pectus. 

*  St.  Louis,  Mo.;  the  population  at  this  time  (1849)  was  about  70,000,  or  nearly 
one-fifth  what  it  was  declared  to  be  under  the  census  of  1880. 

19 


SOME    LETTERS    OF    EDGAR    ALLAN    POE 

If  my  plan  accords  with  your  views,  you  will  imme 
diately  select  a  title,  write  me  to  that  effect,  and  we 
will  both  commence  operations.  I  will  visit  you  at 
New  York  during  the  latter  part  of  July  or  ist  of 
August,  when  we  can  settle  minutiae  and  write  out  pros 
pectus.  We  ought  to  put  out  the  first  number  early  in 
January  next.  Let  me  hear  from  you  immediately. 

And  now  that  business  is  over — a  word  in  your 
private  ear.  In  conversing  with  a  gentleman  from 
Boston  last  year,  upon  the  relative  merits  of  some  of  our 
leading  writers,  I  mentioned  your  name,  and  was  sur 
prised  that  he  did  not  at  once  agree  with  me  in  my 
estimate  of  your  poetic  powers.*  He  confessed  that  he 
had  read  a  review  of  some  of  your  poems  and  concluded 
that  they  were  scarcely  worth  his  attention.  He  had 
not  even  seen  the  "Raven."  I  lent  him  this,  besides 
several  fugitive  pieces  of  yours  in  my  possession — 
"William  Wilson,"  "Murders  of  the  Rue  Morgue,"  &c., 
and  afterwards  "Eureka,"  a  copy  of  which  (the  last  in  the 
city)  I  had  just  a  little  while  before  procured  in  St. 
L.  The  preface  of  this  work  he  said  was  sufficient,  if 

*  Poe  called  Boston  "  Frogpondium."  Having  been  invited  to  deliver  a  new  and 
original  poem  before  the  Boston  Lyceum,  he  went  to  Boston  and  recited  an  old  poem 
which  he  had  composed  in  youth.  When  the  Bostonians  discovered  that  a  trick  had 
been  played  upon  them,  they  were  vastly  exasperated.  Forty  years  after  Poe's  practical 
joke,  an  eminent  Bostonian,  invited  to  deliver  a  new  and  original  address  before  a  Chicago 
audience  (the  occasion  being  Washington's  Birthday),  accepted  the  invitation  and  recited 
a  lecture  which  he  had  written  and  delivered  some  years  previously  for  the  instruction 
and  edification  of  the  students  of  a  Scotch  university  !  In  other  words,  Prof.  James 
Russell  Lowell  played  upon  Chicago  in  1887  a  trick  similar  to  that  played  by  Edgar  A. 
Poe  upon  Boston  somewhat  more  than  forty  years  before  ! 


20 


IT 


J 


^k     6^ 


«*Tv 


TO  E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON  OF  OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS 

he  had  never  read  another  word  of  your  writings,  to 
convince  him  that  Edgar  A.  Poe  was  a  man  of  gigantic 
mind.  I  was  thus  the  humble  instrument  in  removing 
for  the  [End  of  the  Memoranda]. 


FOE'S     SECOND    LETTER. 


New-Tori — May  23 
MY   DEAR   SIR, 

Your  letter  of  the  yth.  came  to  hand  in  due 
course  of  mail;  but  I  have  delayed  my  reply  for  a 
week,  that  I  might  deliberate  well  upon  your  proposi 
tion.  You  will  comprehend  the  caution  with  which 
I  feel  it  necessary  to  act,  when  you  refer  to  my  former 
letter,  in  which  I  endeavored  to  explain  to  you  the 
ambition  of  my  views  and  the  importance  I  assign 
to  success  in  the  Magazine  enterprise.  If  we  attempt  it 
we  must  succeed — for,  so  far  as  concerns  myself  individ 
ually,  all  my  prospects,  pecuniary  as  well  as  literary,  are 
involved  in  the  project — but  I  shrink  from  making 
any  attempt  which  may  fail.  For  these  reasons,  I  have 
thought  long  and  carefully  on  what  you  propose;  and 
I  confess  that  some  serious  difficulties  present  them 
selves.  They  are  not  insuperable,  however;  and,  if  we 
bring  a  proper  energy  to  the  task,  they  may  be  even 
readily  overcome.  Your  residence  at  Okquawka  (sic) 
is  certainly  one  of  the  most  serious  of  these  difficulties ; 
and  I  submit  to  you  whether  it  be  not  possible  to  put 


21 


SOME    LETTERS    OF    EDGAR    ALLAN    POE 

on  our  title-page  "  Published  simultaneously  at  New- 
York  &  Sf.  Louts" — or  something  equivalent. 

However,  these  are  points  to  be  discussed  when  we 
meet — for,  upon  the  whole,  I  say  Yes  to  your  proposi 
tion.  Enclosed,  you  will  find  a  title-page  *  designed  by 
myself  about  a  year  ago: — your  joining  me  will,  of 
course,  necessitate  some  modifications — but  the  title, 
&c  should,  for  many  reasons  (to  be  explained  hereafter) 
be  adhered  to. 

We  will  find  the  7  months  between  now  and  Jan 
uary  brief  enough  for  our  preparations.  It  will  be 
absolutely  necessary  that  we  begin  at  once.  To-day  I 
am  going  to  Boston  &  Lowell,  to  remain  a  week;  and 
immediately  afterwards  I  will  start  for  Richmond,  where 
I  will  await  your  answer  to  this  letter.  Please  direct 
to  me  there,  under  cover,  or  to  the  care  of  John  R. 
Thompson,  Edr.  of  the  "  South.  Lit.  Messenger."  On 
receipt  of  your  letter  (should  you  still  be  in  the  mind 
you  now  are)  I  will  proceed  to  8*.  Louis  &  there  meet 
you.  We  can  then  visit  N.  York  together,  or  I  can 
continue  the  tour,  as  may  be  agreed  on.  In  the  mean 
time  I  will  do  what  I  can  in  Boston  &  Virginia — with 
out  involving  your  name  in  the  enterprize  until  I  hear 
from  you. 

I   fancy  that    I   shall    be  able   to  meet   the   current 

*  This  drawing,  an  exact  facsimile  of  which  appears  in  its  proper  place,  is  made 
with  black  ink  upon  pink  paper.  The  vignette,  clipped  from  the  prospectus  of  the 
Stylus  (which  Poe  contemplated  publishing  with  Thos.  C.  Clarke,  in  1843),  *s  Pastec^ 
upon  the  sheet. 

22 


TO   E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON   OF   OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS 

expenses  of  the  tour  by  lecturing  as  I  proceed;  but 
there  is  something  required  in  the  way  of  outfit;  and 
as  I  am  not  overstocked  with  money  (what  poor-devil 
author  />?)  I  must  ask  you  to  advance  half  of  the  sum 
I  need  to  begin  with — about  $100.  Please,  therefore, 
enclose  $50  in  your  reply,  which  I  will  get  at  Rich 
mond.* 

If  these  arrangements  suit  you,  you  can  announce 
the  agreement,  &c  to  your  friends  &  proceed  as  if 
all  was  signed  and  sealed. 

I    enclose  a  poemf  from  Willis's  "  Home  Journal  ' 
and  would  be  obliged  to  you  if  you  could  have  it  copied 
(with   Willis's  editorial  prefix")  in   some  paper,  either  in 
St.  Louis   or    Oquawka: — enclosing  me    the  copy  when 
you  write.      Cordially  yours, 

EDGAR   A   POE. 

E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON,  Esqr. 

*  Letter  to  "Annie,"  dated  Fordham,  June  16,  1849:  "When  I  can  go  now  is 
uncertain — but,  perhaps,  I  may  be  off  to-morrow  or  next  day — all  depends  upon  circum 
stances  beyond  my  control.  Most  probably  I  will  not  go  until  I  hear  from  Thompson 
(of  the  S.  L.  Messenger),  to  whom  I  wrote  five  days  ago,  telling  him  to  forward  the 
letter  from  Oquawka,  instead  of  retaining  it  until  he  sees  me." — Ingram's  "  Life  of 
Poe,"  II,  216. 

f  The  poem,  "  To  Annie,"  concerning  which,  from  Fordham,  April  20,  Poe  had 
written  to  N.  P.  Willis,  as  follows  :  "  The  poem  which  I  enclose,  and  which  I  am  so 
vain  as  to  hope  you  will  like  in  some  respects,  has  been  just  published  in  a  paper  for 
which  sheer  necessity  compels  me  to  write  now  and  then.  It  pays  well — as  times  go — 
but  unquestionably  it  ought  to  pay  ten  prices,  for  whatever  I  send  it  I  feel  I  am  consign 
ing  to  the  tomb  of  the  Capulets.  The  verses  accompanying  this,  may  I  beg  you  to  take 
out  of  the  tomb,  and  bring  them  to  light  in  the  Home  Journal?  ...  I  have  not 
forgotten  how  a  good  word  from  you  made  l  The  Raven,'  and  made  4  Ulalume,' 
therefore  I  would  ask  you  (if  I  dared)  to  say  something  of  these  lines — if  they  please  you." 

[For  Willis's  "good  word  for  4  The  Raven,'  "  see  Ingram  I,  272.] 


SOME    LETTERS    OF    EDGAR    ALLAN   POE 


FOE'S    THIRD    LETTER. 


Richmond  July 
MY  DEAR  SIR, 

I  left  New- York  six  weeks  ago  on  my  way  to 
this  place,  but  was  arrested  in  Philadelphia  by  the 
Cholera,  from  which  I  barely  escaped  with  life.  I 
have  just  arrived  in  Richmond  and  your  letter  is  only 
this  moment  received — or  rather  your  two  letters  with 
the  enclosures  ($50.  etc.)  I  have  not  yet  read  them 
and  write  now  merely  to  let  you  know  that  they  are 
safe.  In  a  few  days — as  soon  as  I  gather  a  little 
strength — you  shall  hear  from  me  in  full. 

Truly  yours  ever, 

E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON,  ESQ.  EDGAR  A  POE. 


POE's     FOURTH     LETTER. 


Richmond)  Aug.  j 
MY   DEAR   SIR, 

The  date  of  your  last  letter  was  June  7 — so 
that  two  months  have  elapsed  since  you  wrote  it,  and 
I  am  only  just  now  sitting  down  to  reply.  The  fault, 
Heaven  knows,  has  not  been  mine.  I  have  suffered 
worse  than  death — not  so  much  from  the  Cholera  as 
from  its  long-continued  consequences  in  debility,  and 
congestion  of  the  brain — the  latter,  possibly,  attributable 
to  the  calomel  taken. 

24 


TO   E.   H.  N.  PATTERSON  OF   OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS 

I  have  at  length,  however,  been  able  to  give  your 
propositions  full  consideration — and  I  confess  that  I  hes 
itate.  "  To  fail '  would  be  ruinous — at  least  to  me  ; 
and  a  $3  Magazine  (however  well  it  might  succeed 
(temporarily)  under  the  guidance  of  another)  would 
inevitably  fail  under  mine.  I  could  not  undertake  it 
con  amore.  My  heart  would  not  be  in  the  work.  So 
far  as  regards  all  my  friends  and  supporters — so  far  as 
concerns  all  that  class  to  whom  /  should  look  for  sym 
pathy  and  nearly  all  of  whom  I  proposed  to  see  person 
ally — the  mere  idea  of  a  "$3  Magazine  "  would  suggest 
namby-pamby-ism  &  frivolity.  Moreover,  even  with  a 
far  more  diminished  circulation  than  you  suggest, 
the  profits  of  a  $5  work  would  exceed  those  of  a 
$2  one. 

I  most  bitterly  lament  the  event  which  has  detained 
me  from  St.  Louis — for  I  cannot  help  thinking  that,  in 
a  personal  interview,  I  could  have  brought  you  over  to 
my  plans.  I  fear  that  now  it  is  too  late.  But  a  Mag. 
might  be  issued  in  jfufy  very  well — and  if  you  think  it 
possible  that  your  views  might  be  changed,  I  will  still 
visit  you  at  St.  L.  As  yet,  I  am  too  feeble  to  travel;  but 
by  the  time  your  reply  to  this  reaches  me,  I  shall  have 
gained  sufficient  strength  to  set  out.*  It  is  not  impos 
sible,  indeed,  that,  with  energy,  the  first  number  might 

*  From  the  Oquawka  Spectator,  Sept.  5,  1849:  "Edgar  A.  Poe,  the  celebrated 
poet,  is  now  lecturing  in  his  native  city,  Richmond,  Va.  His  great  erudition,  added  to 
his  giant  intellect  and  a  most  felicitous  command  of  language  cannot  fail  to  render  his 
lectures  very  popular." 


SOME    LETTERS    OF    EDGAR    ALLAN    POE 

yet  be  issued   in   January.*       I  will,  therefore,  await,  in 
Richmond,  your  answer  to  this.     Very  cordially  yours 

EDGAR  A  POE. 

Immediately  upon  receipt  of  this  letter,  Patterson 
addressed  to  Poe  the  last  letter f  in  this  correspondence, 
as  follows : 

Oquawka,  ///.,  Aug.  21,    1849. 
Edgar  A.  Poe,  Esq.: 

MY  DEAR  SIR, 

Yours  of  the  yth  inst.  was  received  last  night, 
and  I  hasten  to  reply.  I  am  truly  glad  to  hear  that 
you  are  recovering  your  health,  and  trust  it  will  soon 
be  fully  restored.  You  cannot  enter  into  the  joint 
publication  of  a  $3  Mag.  with  "your  heart  in  the 
work."  Well,  what  say  you  to  this?- 

In  publishing  a  $5  magazine,  of  96  pp.,  monthly, — 


*  i.  "He  was  at  this  time"  (1849)  "  absorbed  in  his  cherished  scheme  of  estab 
lishing  his  projected  journal,  the  Stylus.  Nearly  all  his  old  friends  in  Virginia  had  prom 
ised  to  aid  him  with  the  necessary  funds,  and  he  was  sanguine  of  success.  He  intended 
to  spare  no  pains,  no  effort,  to  establish  this  as  the  leading  literary  journal  of  the  country. 
He  would  offer  a  more  liberal  price  for  contributions  than  any  other  pub 
lisher.  This  would,  of  course,  demand  capital  to  begin  with,  which  was  all  that  he 
required  ;  and  of  that  he  bad  the  promise.  To  establish  this  journal  had  been,  he  said,  the 
cherished  dream  of  his  life,  and  now  at  last  he  felt  assured  of  success." — Scribner's 
Monthly,  March,  1878;  "Last  Days  of  Edgar  Poe,"  by  Mrs.  Weiss. 

2.  u  On  no  occasion  had  I  seen  him  so  cheerful  and  hopeful  as  on  this  evening." 
(Oct.  i,  1849.)  " 4  Do  you  know,'  he  inquired,  l  how  I  spent  most  of  this  morning? 
In  writing  a  critique  of  your  poems.  ...  I  intend  it  to  be  one  of  my  best  and  that 
it  shall  appear  in  the  second  number  of  the  Stylus ' — so  confident  was  he  in  regard  to 
this  magazine." — Ibid. 

f  Of  the  seven  letters  given  herewith  this  is  the  only  one  that  has  ever  before  been 
printed.  It  is  to  be  found  in  Gill's  "  Life  of  Poe,"  pp.  232-233. 

26 


TO    E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON   OF   OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS 

page  same  size  as  Graham  s — in  bourgeois  or  brevier 
(instead  of  long  primer  and  brevier,  as  first  proposed),  it 
would  be  necessary  for  me  to  make  an  outlay  of  at  least 
$1,100  (this  amount  including  a  supply  of  paper  for 
three  months  for  2,000  copies).  Now,  if  you  are  sure 
that,  as  you  before  thought,  1,000  subscribers  can  be 
obtained  who  will  pay  upon  receipt  of  the  first  number, 
then  you  may  consider  me  pledged  to  be  with  you  in 
the  undertaking. 

If  this  proposition  meets  your  approval,  you  may 
immediately  commence  your  journey  to  St.  Louis- 
making  easy  stages  through  the  South  and  operating  on 
your  way — so  as  to  reach  that  city  by  the  middle  of 
October  (say  the  i5th),  keeping  me  advised  of  your 
progress,  as  you  proceed,  by  letter,  say  every  two  weeks. 
I  will  meet  you  at  St.  Louis,  by  the  time  mentioned,  at 
which  time  I  shall  be  more  at  leisure  than  before,  and 
can  then  settle  on  arrangements.  You  may  associate 
my  name  with  your  own  in  the  matter,  the  same  as  if  I 
had  met  you  in  person. 

Adopt  your  own  title.  I  leave  this  matter  to  you 
as  belonging  peculiarly  to  your  department.  (Remem 
ber,  however,  published  simultaneously  at  New  York 
and  St.  Louis.)  The  first  number  can  be  issued  in 
July — it  is  now  too  late  to  do  it  in  January,  and  it 
would  not  be  advisable  to  commence  at  any  time  other 
than  the  beginning  or  the  middle  of  the  year.  I  will  try 
to  be  at  St.  Louis  on  the  i^th  of  October,  if  your  answer 

27 


SOME    LETTERS    OF    EDGAR    ALLAN    POE 

to  this   be   favorable;    until  which  time  I  bid  you  God 
speed,  and  beg  leave  to  sign  myself, 

Most  truly  yours, 

ED.  H.  N.  PATTERSON. 

P.  S.  —  I  send  this  via  St.  Louis  and  Vincennes,  and 
will  make  a  duplicate  via  Chicago  to-morrow."* 

Yours,  E.  H.  N.  P. 


Poe  died  at  Baltimore,  Oct.  7,  1849^  As  Patterson 
admired  and  believed  in  him  living,  so  he  sought  to  do 
honor  to  him  dead.  He  determined  to  publish  his 
complete  works,  and  with  this  object  in  view  he  wrote 
from  Oquawka  to  John  R.  Thompson,  editor  of  the 
Southern  Literary  Messenger,  making  inquiry  after  Poe's 
unpublished  manuscripts,  and  asking  information  as  to 
the  last  moments  of  the  man  whom  he  had  hoped  to 
benefit.  Mr.  Thompson  returned  a  characteristic  answer, 
as  follows  : 

*  i.  Pages  232-33  Gill's  "Life  of  Poe." 

2.  "  Chicago  is  built  on  a  level  prairie,  elevated  somewhat  above  the  lake  surface, 
and  lies  on  both  sides  of  Chicago  River,  about  a  mile  above  its  entrance  in  the  lake. 
The  city  has  sprung  up  rapidly;  it  now  contains  about  26,000  inhabitants  and  is  one  of 
the  largest  grain  depots  in  the  Union.  Its  commerce  is  immense  ;  the  lumber  trade  is 
also  becoming  very  profitable.  Chicago  is  connected  with  the  western  rivers  by  a  sloop 
canal,  one  of  the  most  magnificent  works  ever  undertaken.  It  is  connected  with 
Galena  by  railroad."  —  Colton's  "Western  Tourist,"  1750. 

f  i.  From  the  Oquawka  Spectator,  Oct.  24,  1849:  "Edgar  A.  Poe  is  dead. 
The  doings  of  the  Supreme  One  are  incomprehensible,  and  it  is  not  for  frail 
man  to  impugn  His  motives,  else  we  might  wonder  why  the  lamented  poet  was  removed 
so  soon,  and  when  he  was  upon  the  eve  of  realizing  the  cherished  hope  of  his  life  ! 
Arrangements  had  been  made  by  which  he  was,  had  he  lived,  to  be  placed  next  year  at 
the  head  of  a  large  magazine,  which  was  to  be  entirely  under  his  control.  This  state- 

28 


TO    E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON   OF   OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS 


Richmond,  Va.^  Nov.  p 
MY  DEAR  SIR, 

Your  letter  making  inquiries  of  a  personal  nature 
concerning  poor  Poe  has  been  lying  on  my  table  some 
days.  I  avail  myself  of  the  first  leisure  moment  to 
reply  to  it. 

My  first  acquaintance  with  the  deceased  was  in  the 
spring  of  1848,  when  I  accidentally  learned  that  a  per 
son  calling  himself  Edgar  A.  Poe  had  been,  for  a  fort 
night,  in  a  debauch,  in  one  of  the  lowest  haunts  of  vice 
upon  the  wharves  in  this  City.  If  you  have  ever  visited 
Richmond,  you  may  perhaps  know  that  the  business 
portion  of  the  town  and  the  sites  occupied  by  residences 
exclusively  are  distant  from  the  shipping  by  a  mile  and 

ment  may  surprise  many  of  his  friends,  but   it   is   nevertheless  true.     We  are  personally 
knowing  to  the  whole  arrangement." 

2.   From  the  Oquawka  Spectator,  Oct.  31,  1849  : 


EDGAR    A.    POE. 


His  spirit,  before  it  left  this  lower  earth, 

Often  in  the  starry  heaven,  where  it  had  birth, 

Communed  with  saintly  souls  and  caught 

Many  a  golden  vision,  which  it  brought 

Back  from  the  Dreamland  of  its  heavenward  flight — 

Then  held  the  glittering  fancy  to  the  sight 

Of  those  who,  less  poetic,  vainly  sought 

To  rival  him  whose  soul  was  heaven  taught. 

3.  In  the  Oquawka  Spectator,  Nov.  7,  1849,  occurs  what  we  believe  to  have 
been  the  first  public  defense  of  Poe  after  his  death.  This  defense  is  a  reply  to  an 
article  in  the  Saturday  Gazette,  the  latter  paper  having  made  this  remarkable  prediction  : 
"  With  considerable  capacity  for  continued  mental  labor,  Poe  produced  no  great  works 
on  which  to  build  his  fame ;  and  the  consequence  is  that,  in  fifty  years,  his  reputation, 
like  that  of  Denny,  will  be  merely  traditional !  " 

29 


SOME    LETTERS    OF    EDGAR    ALLAN    POE 

a  half,  so  that  very  few  persons  not  actually  engaged  in 
commercial  affairs  ever  visit  the  landing  at  all.  As  soon 
as  I  heard  the  name  of  Poe  in  this  connection  my  worst 
suspicions  were  excited,  and  I  at  once  took  a  carriage 
and  went  to  seek  him.  It  was  a  very  warm  day  in  the 
latter  part  of  May  or  early  in  June.  When  I  reached 
the  purlieus  of  this  abandoned  quarter,  I  learned  that 
such  a  person  had  indeed  been  there,  drunk,  for  two 
weeks,  and  that  he  had  gone  a  few  hours  previous,  with 
out  hat  or  coat,  to  the  residence  of  Mr.  John  Mac- 
Kenzie,  some  three  miles  distant  in  the  country,  alone 
and  on  foot.  It  was  Poe.  The  next  day  he  called  on 
me  with  Mr.  MacKenzie.  From  that  time  until  his 
death  we  were  much  together  and  in  constant  corre 
spondence.  I  did  all  I  could  to  restrain  his  excesses  and 
to  relieve  the  pressure  of  his  immediate  wants  (for  he 
was  extremely  indigent),  but  no  influence  was  adequate 
to  keep  him  from  the  damnable  propensity  to  drink, 
and  his  entire  residence  in  Richmond  of  late  was  but  a 
succession  of  disgraceful  follies.  He  spoke  of  himself 
as  the  victim  of  a  pre-ordained  damnation,  as  r ame 
perdue^  a  soul  lost  beyond  all  hope  of  redemption.  For 
three  weeks  previous  to  his  departure  from  Richmond 
he  had  been  sober — a  Son  of  Temperance.  But  no 
confidence  could  be  placed  in  him  in  any  relation  of 
life,  least  of  all  in  antagonism  to  his  fatal  weakness.  He 
died,  indeed,  in  delirium  from  drunkenness ;  the  shadow 
of  infamy  beclouded  his  last  moments 

30 


TO   E.   H.  N.  PATTERSON   OF   OQUAWKA,  ILLINOIS 

And  his  soul  from  out  that  shadow 
Shall  be  lifted  never  more  ! 

But  who  shall  judge  harshly  of  the  dead?  Mercy 
benignantly  tempers  the  divine  Justice,  and  to  this 
Justice  we  commit  his  spirit. 

Poe  had  spoken  to  me  of  your  design  with  reference 
to  the  literary  enterprize  of  which  you  speak.  You 
were  fortunate,  I  think,  in  not  having  embarked  in  it, 
for  a  more  unreliable  person  than  he  could  hardly  be 
found.  I  have  not,  as  yet,  recovered  his  trunk,  so  that 
I  cannot  tell  you  whether  or  no  he  left  any  unpublished 
mss.  The  day  before  he  went  North  from  Richmond, 
I  advanced  him  a  small  sum  of  money  *  for  a  prospective 
article  which  he  probably  never  wrote.  His  complete 
works  will  be  brought  out  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Griswold. 

With  much  regard,  I  am,  Sir,  yours, 

JNO.  R.  THOMPSON. 

E.  H.  N.  PATTERSON, 


Ten  years  after  the  failure  of  this  remarkable  scheme 
to  found  a  national  magazine  at  Oquawka,  Mr.  Patter 
son  went  to  Colorado,  and  there  he  lived  to  the  end  of 
his  days.  He  was  a  singularly  earnest  and  kindly  man; 

*i.  "  He  was  needy,  and  had  asked  Mr.  Thompson  fora  loan  of  five  dollars  to  help 
out  his  traveling  expenses.  As  he  was  about  to  go,  he  turned  to  Mr.  Thompson,  saying  : 
'  By  the  way,  you  have  been  very  kind  to  me  —  here  is  a  little  trifle  that  may  be  worth 
something  to  you  ;  '  and  he  handed  Mr.  Thompson  a  small  roll  of  paper,  upon  which 
were  written  the  exquisite  lines  of  'Annabel  Lee.'"  —  Gill's  "Life  of  Poe,"  p.  231. 

2.  "  More  than  this,  the  S.  L.  Messenger,  which  owes  me  a  good  deal,  cannot  pay 
just  yet,  and,  altogether,  I  am  reduced  to  Sartain  and  Graham,  both  very  precarious."  — 
Letter  to  "Annie;"  Ingram,  II,  214. 

31 


SOME    LETTERS    OF    EDGAR   ALLAN    POE 


he  loved  to  help  the  struggling,  and,  as  he  had  stood 
ready  to  succor,  to  befriend,  and  to  cherish  the  genius 
which  the  East  had  buffeted  and  trodden  down,  so 
through  his  life  this  noble  man  stood  at  all  times  against 
intolerance  and  injustice.  Maintaining  to  the  very  last 
his  fondness  for  literature  and  his  sympathy  for  literary 
workers,  he  encouraged  many  a  young  writer  with 
his  friendly  words  and  benefited  many  others  with  his 
prudent  counsels  and  his  timely  charities.  To  the 
writer  of  these  words — himself  a  Western  man — there 
has  never  before  come  an  opportunity  more  grateful  than 
this  wherein  he  is  enabled  to  pay  the  tribute  of  his 
veneration  to  the  memory  of  Edwin  Patterson.* 

Though  leagues  of  arid  plains,  of  mighty  waters, 
and  of  rugged  mountains  separate  the  graves  wherein 
the  poet  and  his  friend  repose,  is  it  not  the  sweetest 
promise  of  our  faith  that  beyond  the  portal  of  death 
there  is  a  soul-companionship,  indissoluble  and  eternal? 

*  We  find  a  mention  of  Mr.  Patterson  in  the  following  "Lives  "  of  Poe  :  Gill's, 
pp.  231,  232;  Woodberry's,  pp.  332,  341.  In  none  of  the  other  "Lives"  is  anything 
said  or  even  hinted  of  Patterson. 


PRINTED    FOR    THE     CAXTON  CLUB,    BY 

R.   R.    DONNELLEY   AND    SONS  COMPANY 

AT     THE      LAKESIDE      PRESS,  CHICAGO, 

MDCCCXCVIII 


